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Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Face Laced (A Skitch-I-Y)

Well, hello! A bold return! Last time I dared look at my blog it was February. Woah! A LOT has been going on. Finished my internship, did some work, now I'm back on the job search cycle again, my plans for Parsons are rounding up, etc. Since I'm in between jobs, I have quite a bit of free time on my hands. Not that that's a bad thing, but I did realize I can't go back to my lazy ways. I enjoy having something or too much to do all the time. These past few days have been bugging me. I mean sure, I'm a very creative person and I've got plenty to make but somehow I've found myself waking up and sticking myself to my bed with my lappy on hand and a good cup of joe and lo and behold... there goes my day! It sucks, I know. Maybe I'm in a bit of a rut but let's just face it, these past few weeks have been a bit hard on my soul, my head, and my pocket. Leave it to me to find an expensive outlet for my woes. I head towards the makeup department, maybe more so than the fashion one. It's like child's play to me. It's art but practical and direct. Slap that on and walk out the door easy. Problem? I'm broke. So I decide to do something about it. I lay out all of my stock of makeup in front of me and I think, "If I can't get myself anything new, I'll work with what I've got and make it new.". It's just a matter of techniques, I suppose.

Oh boy, was I right! I'm always really into graphic patterns and designs, so it's no surprise I also reflect that on my makeup aesthetic. I've always loved a good, lacey pattern too so I took it upon myself to spontaneously work that into my eye makeup. Here's the how-to on getting this really cool stenciled lace work on your peepers or any place on your face and body. It's so intricate, it's actually too easy to achieve.

You'll need:

A primer. Depends if you're doing this on your eyes or face, you'll either use a face or eyeshadow primer. My reccomendation is Nars' Eyeshadow primer or Make Up Forever's HD Face primer.

A white base. Leave it to NYX's Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk to transform your old, boring eyeshadows into an "OMG THIS IS AMAZING PAYOFF!" product.

Any good, flat shadow brush. Flat as in not paddle-like, but flat as in not tappered. Or just about any good blending brush will do. These are from Estée Lauder.

Eyeshadows and pigments of your choice. This technique I find works best with dry products, so I'd leave the cream pigments and shadows out unless you work them with a sponge but I fear that'll blend in too much with the NYX Eye Pencil base and you'll loose the effect.

Lace or ribbon of your choice. This is my absolute favorite ribbon. I use it for absolutely EVERYTHING! I love that it's so organic.

How to:

Step 1: Prep and prime your skin. I didn't do it for this tutorial because I'd be wiping it off as soon as I'd finish it so I didn't want to waste my primer on it but if you're going to use this for an event or costume, it's best you do.

Step 2: Take your white base and distribute it evenly on the surface you want to place your design on. Don't put on too much, because this can crease if overdone.

Step 3: With your finger, blend out the product until your get a nice, even coat. This will help the colors stick and the contrast between the colors and the stencil outlines pop.

Step 4: Place the lace over the white base. Hold it firmly in place.

Step 5: Take your brush, dip it into the color of choice and start stippling it over the area. Remember to keep the lace steady in place or your design will shift and you'll loose the effect! Be as creative as you want. You can blend in different color variations or play with shine!

Step 6: Remove lace...

And you're done!

You can play around with this technique however you wish. It's great for a reptile effect or scales. This is how I used it. I didn't realize it was a bit of Black Swan-ish until after I finished the look but whatever. I didn't plan it so this is how it turned out and I loved it! I kept the lips nude because of course, there was so much going up on the eyes that I didn't want it to turn out like a face fiasco.